In this article, I will tell you how we did business with friends on motor vehicles and cars! It all started with the fact that my friend bought an old moped but on the go. He repaired it, painted it, in general, brought it to a pretty good condition.
My friends and I were very surprised at such a transformation of this moped, and the idea crept into our minds to buy mopeds, motorcycles and other various motor vehicles, bring them to mind and sell, for example, at a price 1.5 times higher than the purchase price. My friends and I agreed who would do what exactly and began to translate our plans into reality.
There were 5 of us. We distributed, traveled throughout the city, asked people about various equipment, also searched and called on ads. At first, our dream came true very slowly, we found 2-3 vehicles within a month and made them sold, but then when we got used to it within a few months, the work went like clockwork.
Often our friends informed us about motorcycles and we were in a hurry to buy. The equipment was repaired in the private garage of one of his friends, who was personally his, so we used to spend nights there to earn money for various needs. This went on for about 3 years, during this time we sold a lot of different equipment and earned a total of money for the third apartment approximately. During this time, there were many quarrels and disagreements, but we tried to overcome everything quickly, since we are one team.
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After a while, we realized that these funds from motor vehicles were not enough for us and decided to rent a garage also for car repairs. After 2 weeks we succeeded and we rented a garage about 4 kilometers from our first garage. Since then, in addition to motor technology, we have also started to deal with cars.
We posted ads all over the city and posted them on our personal website on the Internet. As we expected, calls poured in one after another and we began not to have time to do everything in time, so we had to involve 3 more familiar guys in our business.
During our "business" it seemed to us that we had repaired the floor of the city of cars and motor vehicles of various brands. We always liked our work, although it was a little boring and monotonous, but we rarely complained about it, since this work is our money. This went on year after year for about 7 years. Since we were simple guys, we didn’t even start going anywhere and decided to carry on our business to the end.
True, one of the acquaintances decided to go to higher education, took his share and left us forever. But here, as the saying goes, no one stopped anyone. It is bad, of course, that we have lost a master in our business, but a replacement can be found for everyone, which we did during the week. Gradually, we began to think about something more significant, about a chain of stores around the city.
But in order to do this, we needed more people or tie up with the old and move to a new level, and after consulting, we decided that we would expand our team and work on two fronts, receiving more decent money than the previous ones.
So we have become good businessmen. The main thing is always to find a job to your liking, not to sit still, but to work to work to work!
If we fast forward a few days ago, we can remember the publication in which we talked about the business on delivery. Hourly rent. Then, in the last paragraph, we briefly mentioned the English startup Pit Start, which offers motorists a full-fledged complex that allows them to repair their car on their own. I must say that such an unusual approach to organizing a service station has brought its results. In the form of a huge number of regular customers.
But ground transport is not limited to only one "self-run strollers", as the first cars were called in the old days. Today, other vehicles also roam along city and country roads, among which they occupy not the last place. If we talk about the territory of our country, then two-wheeled "friends" are not very popular with us. But in the West, in the USA and Canada, motorcycles are very popular. It is not for nothing that the first biker movements originated in the 50s of the last century on the territory of America. And, probably, this is why the startup, which will be discussed in today's publication, is also from the American continent.
DIY motorcycle repair workshop
Canadian entrepreneurs from Vancouver have offered motorcycle owners a very interesting service. Now any biker can use the garage and the tool presented here to dig deeper into their vehicle. In fact, their project - Motomethod - is fully completed. Only all the necessary operations are carried out by the motorcyclists themselves.
The garage has all the tools you need to repair old and new motorcycle models. As additional services, Motomethod offers bike owners the delivery of spare parts, towing (if necessary, the customer's bike will be brought to the workshop by a pickup truck) and storage space for motorcycles. For aspiring motorcyclists, it offers advice on the repair, operation and maintenance of two-wheeled friends.
In order to use the Motomethod Self Service Workshop, a membership fee of CAD 100 per year is required. For this money, a new member of Motomethod gets the opportunity to use the services of a workshop at a price of $ 25 per hour. In addition, it offers storage space for $ 1 a day, one free bike delivery to and from the repair site, and big discounts on new tires. In addition to all of the above, bikers have a full-fledged service center at their disposal, where experienced mechanics work, ready at any time to solve almost any problem related to motorcycles. While the client communicates with other lovers of "two wheels", sipping a cup of coffee.
For many motorcyclists, the Motomethod workshop has become a second home, where they spend a huge part of their time. Indeed, in addition to repairs, they will have communication with a large number of like-minded people who know a lot about good motorcycles.
In the market for the sale of motorcycle equipment, the leading positions are occupied by Japanese manufacturers, up to 70% of the total sales. These are such models as: Yamaha, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Honda and many others. Back in the 90s, in Russia, they brought a lot of second-hand motorcycle equipment of Japanese origin.
The main supplier, in Soviet times, the Czech company producing the world famous brand "Java", today no longer brings its products to Russia. And before - it was the most popular motorcycle of those years, among other motorcycle models.
Today, there are also European representatives with brands of their motorcycles: BMW; Ducati.
Of the Russian representatives, only one Irbit Moto Plant “Ural” remained, which still sells its motor vehicles.
Plant them. Degtyareva, who previously successfully assembled and sold Voskhod motorcycles, now assembles and sells Chinese Lifan scooters. And the IZH plant was closed altogether.
In order to start doing this type of business, you need to know something in more detail about it. For example, why, having a rather large demand in Russia, for motor vehicles, it is in stores and motorcycle dealerships, and is practically not sold. The fact is that shops and moto dealerships make a very large mark-up on the goods. Explaining this by the costs of bringing goods from abroad (intermediary services), as well as for the "pre-sale preparation". But actually. This is not reality. It is simply profitable for a motorcycle dealership to sell one motorcycle at such a price than three at a more reduced one. Since motorcycles are preferred to buy in order to ride, especially young people, or for the pleasure of driving "on the track, or just for stunt riding, it is more profitable to take motor vehicles just for rent. Ride and paid, decided to ride again, again rented a motorcycle. It is not expensive, and you do not need to think about the premises, for its storage, and with repairs - no problems. That is why young people under 30 do this without buying motorcycles.
The only clients of motorcycle dealerships are wealthy people who are well versed in motor vehicles, and can really appreciate the advantages of one or another model. They do not look at the price, but buy the model of the motorcycle that they have been looking for for a long time, or ordered, to order a motorcycle dealership, or just the model of the motorcycle they like. They buy, both for themselves and as a gift, for example, for a son, nephew, a chaplain, etc.
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In order to start a business, and it really made a profit, you need:
1. Rent an area for the sale of motor vehicles.
2. Prepare all the necessary documents, both for entrepreneurial activity and winding equipment (passports, customs clearance, tax payment).
3. Determine which motor vehicles and from which country you will bring, talk to the dealers of those countries. And remember that 30% of success depends on communication, the ability to negotiate, bargain, conclude and sign contracts.
4. Decide whether you will also supply motorcycle spare parts for motorcycle equipment. If so, what types of motorcycles, which manufacturer, and in what quantity.
It is very profitable to trade in motorcycle spare parts, if all the same, you will be engaged in the drive and sale of motorcycle equipment, then trading in motorcycle spare parts will not hurt you. This is an additional profitable income. Motorcycles break down as often as cars, and it is sometimes very difficult to find this or that part for a certain brand of motorcycle, a certain year of manufacture. So it turns out that the owner is ready to shell out any amount of money for the spare parts he needs.
5. Also, it would not be bad to draw up a business plan where you can calculate income, net income, and take into account and subtract all the disadvantages and disadvantages of this type of business. It is necessary to take into account the rent of premises, salaries of employees, taxes, customs duties, tickets for the road (after all, you will have to travel very often and conclude the necessary contracts for the supply of motor vehicles).
Even if you do not do this yourself, you will have to take a person who will negotiate on your behalf and represent the Wagu side. So transport services must be included in the item - expenses.
6. Determine in the same way for yourself whether you will also be engaged in used motor vehicles. Used motor vehicles are cheaper than new ones, and therefore are in great demand among the population.
7. Will you run your business alone, or involve a partner, or even two or three. How large will your endeavors be?
The business of selling motorcycles, if started correctly, will bring a pretty good income. Sales per year reach 10 million rubles, even if you make only a 30% markup on the cost of the machinery and pay all the necessary taxes, the net profit per year will still reach from 2 million rubles to 5 million rubles. You can also bring motorcycle models and spare parts to order. To do this, with the client - the customer, it is necessary to discuss the model, color, delivery time and prices.
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“The best job is a high-paying hobby,” Henry Ford once said. A person who has turned his hobby into a growing profitable business can really be considered lucky. The niche selling motorcycles was the first and main step towards the financial success of the Novosibirsk entrepreneur Ivan Maltsev - his company MOTO-RR has been on the market for 9 years. He told us about how the crisis is changing consumer demand and what is central to the motorcycle business.
Passion creates a proposal
In his third year at the university, Ivan decided that he wanted to buy, repair and resell motorcycles. Friends, the offer to financially participate in this project was not taken seriously, with smirks and doubts. And then the 35 thousand rubles, accumulated independently thanks to all kinds of part-time jobs and scholarships, became the start-up capital for the purchase of the first two motorcycles. Having sold the first ones, our hero bought new ones with the proceeds, disassembled and re-offered them to potential customers. The scheme worked. At the age of 19, he could already afford to ride any motorcycle he liked.
Ivan Maltsev: “I had everything I wanted. I invested huge time resources in this project, I came home at 2-3 in the morning with my hands smeared with oil up to my elbows. He repaired motorcycles - more than 1000 units (!) - with his own hands, was the chief mechanic and expert in his company. Thanks to the experience gained, now I can repair absolutely any motorcycle without special instructions and manuals, because I know almost everything about them. "
In 2009, Ivan opened a MOTO-RR motorcycle dealership in Novosibirsk, then launched a website that cost 20 thousand rubles. At that time, the young entrepreneur did not really believe that online advertising would work and that these funds would someday pay off. But after 1.5 years, the site took top positions in Yandex and became the most viewed resource in the city. Ivan began to read books, study sales techniques, conduct high-quality marketing programs - all this made it possible to sell 200 motorcycles already in 2011. Each unit sold was generating $ 1000 in income at that time.
The key to a successful start
The entrepreneur is not always able to make the right decisions that lead to the growth of the company. The owner of MOTO-RR also made several serious mistakes that negatively affected sales. Ivan considers the main one to be the implementation of low-quality products at the start. The reason for this was the corresponding deliveries from Vladivostok - motorcycles came with twisted runs, far from being in the best condition.
Ivan Maltsev: “When we put one or two tablespoons of tar in a barrel of honey, its contents become solid tar. If 200 high-quality motorcycles and 10 low-quality motorcycles are sold, then those that were of low quality will be more noticeable. We made this mistake, and the negativity of the buyers seriously affected the sales and the evaluation of the company's performance. A positive result appeared only in 2012, when I began to import products from Japan without intermediaries. After that, he began to conduct a thorough control of each purchase. I would advise every aspiring entrepreneur to be as honest as possible in relation to clients. "
Our hero considers public feuds with competitors, clarification of relations in public forums to be another important mistake for himself. Work with the incoming negative, as Ivan notes, can be done in two ways: do not react to it or admit your shortcomings, promise to correct yourself, arguing this with concern for the client and the desire to improve. The betrayal of the branch manager he hired was essential for the financial and psychological state of the founder of MOTO-RR.
Ivan Maltsev: “I entrusted the head of the branch opened in Yekaterinburg with all possible functions, including financial and reporting, - everything was on one person. As a result, I was "thrown" for 2.5 million rubles. Now I can say with confidence that 1 is the weakest number in the business. You cannot close everything on one person. In addition, you need to control every little thing yourself and forget about gullibility in financial matters. "
Among other mistakes that were made in the course of the formation of the MOTO-RR motorcycle salon, the owner mentioned mistakes in productive recruitment, the inability to transfer ordinary functions into the hands of subordinates, the lack of all financial accounting and analytics. “Lack of courage and potential to scale has prevented it from gaining momentum in time. If I could go abroad a little earlier, hire the right people, do wholesale supplies and open a second branch, I would have earned an additional 30 million rubles, ”says Ivan.
Our hero advised novice entrepreneurs to test various advertising options at the start stage, choose the best attraction levers for their direction and stake on them in promotion. For the motorcycle show in 2013-2014, Ivan created a YouTube channel and received a "explosion" of sales - the advertising tool worked perfectly and has been working so far, remaining an effective and free way to attract customers. Ivan also recommends paying attention to your website by filling it with SEO-optimized content with a focus on free traffic.
Directions and perspectives
In the MOTO-RR company, work is carried out in 6 directions: wholesale supplies, retail sale of assortment, acceptance of orders for models from auctions (USA and Japan), urgent purchase of motorcycles or exchange with a surcharge, sale of special equipment, as well as the opening of franchise offices. The founder of the project considers the auction direction to be one of his most important competitive advantages.
The company has a well-built business process: from calling a potential client to making a purchase. Each motorcycle is available for a test drive - it is direct contact with the vehicle, which emotionally affects the buyer, helps to conclude deals.
Ivan Maltsev: “The client needs to be involved in the presentation process so that he himself can see, touch, ride, take pictures. Then he has a completely different picture than the one that developed when talking on the phone. Another feature of our company is sales via Skype - this allows us to sell products in other cities of Russia. When a client calls, I transfer the conversation to Skype, walk with a camera and show everything on the spot - the decision is made instantly. This doubles the conversion rate. "
A separate business process is the customs clearance of products, in which you need to learn to be well versed before starting such a project. The company has a permanent sales department, marketing department, procurement department, sales department, service department - everything works like clockwork. In addition to the sale of motorcycles, MOTO-RR is engaged in their repair and maintenance. The only difficulty that we have to put up with today is the high dollar exchange rate. All the accumulated experience and the study of regular summaries of sales statistics help the founder of the company to maintain a high position in the market.
Ivan Maltsev: “In the motorcycle business, I am going to occupy a wholesale niche and become one of the largest suppliers. To work with the opening of representative offices, it is planned to sell a franchise to millionaire cities. In addition, we intend to take a number of anti-crisis measures to reduce costs and optimize purchases. I have no doubt that we will achieve good results in 2-3 years, but for now the goal is to get the maximum profit from what we have. "
Motorcycle dealership in facts and figures
Number of motorcycle dealerships
There are 3 motorcycle dealerships in total: 1 owned salon in Novosibirsk, 1 franchised salon in Yekaterinburg, 1 separate branch in Vladivostok.
Unique offers
- Motorcycles are delivered one month faster than any other competitor.
- In addition to buying motorcycles from available ones, the client has the opportunity to order the model he likes with delivery and take part in auctions that take place in the USA and Japan.
- Each motorcycle is checked against a corporate checklist of 88 points. This is a thorough technical inspection and assessment of the condition of the vehicle.
- Since 2013, we have introduced a free warranty for purchased motorcycles for a period of 1 month.
Ivan Maltsev: “Before making such a decision, the thought came to me that people would start returning, demanding repairs, and we would lose money. But then I decided that since we already help clients with repairs, we won't lose much, the more people will be pleased to receive a guarantee. In addition, you can write about such an offer in ads and thereby attract new buyers. We started testing - as a result, there were not many returns, repairs were inexpensive, and overall the marketing ploy worked perfectly. "
- Internet sales with a presentation of motorcycles via skype.
- For the purchase of a motorcycle, service services and simply for advertising purposes, customers receive company branded key rings. “The trinkets were ordered from one of the factories in China and cost only 12 rubles apiece. This is guerrilla marketing, free advertising. I am ready to come to any party and distribute these key rings to everyone, ”says Ivan Maltsev.
Start-up capital
35 thousand rubles, which were spent on the purchase of the first two motorcycles for subsequent resale.
How quickly the investment paid off
Immediately. In the first year, 350 thousand rubles were earned.
Company turnover
The monthly turnover is about 1.5 million rubles. The turnover in 2016 is about 20 million rubles.
Monthly expenses
Fixed costs - 112 thousand rubles (Internet, communications, communications, rent, advertising, etc.). Variable costs are on average 300-400 thousand rubles.
Monthly net profit
300 thousand rubles.
Business profitability
In 2013-2014, the profitability was 60%, now it is 25-35%.
Promotion tools
Bulletin boards like drom.ru, SEO-optimized sites and aucmoto.ru, word of mouth, branded gazelle as an advertising medium, YouTube channel, social networks, Instagram, feedback, bike festivals, rallies, forums and various biker events. “Bikers are a separate get-together: you need to participate in their events, distribute business cards there, and communicate. In any city there are 2-3 points where motorcycle fans gather - this is the best target audience, ”says Ivan Maltsev.
Average check size
200 thousand rubles.
Average number of clients per month
15 clients.
Working hours
From 9:00 to 19:00 seven days a week.
Peak attendance
Saturday Sunday.
Sometimes sitting in a stuffy office and listening to the tedious remarks of the boss, one so wants to stand up proudly, slam the door and go into the happy and attractive future of a businessman.
Eh, dreams, dreams ...
But really, how can you really start your own business? This question occupies the minds of many people, but the answer to it is sometimes on the very surface, you just have to reach out and grab the chance flying by.
For example, a resident of a big city, how often do you encounter the problem of traffic jams? Yes, every day. In order to get to work, you need to leave the house with a margin of at least an hour. The city authorities, of course, are trying to solve this problem, but, unfortunately, this does not help much.
Sometimes a business person, rushing to a meeting with clients, is ready to shell out a lot of money and fly even on a broomstick, just to get where he needs to on time. However, there is a more realistic way to avoid wasting time in traffic jams. A motorcycle taxi can become such a salvation.
Realizing the idea of creating a taxi on motorcycles is a real way to start your own business. So where should you start a business? There are two options for starting such a business:
1.buy several motorcycles and rent them out
2. attract motorcycle owners and get a certain percentage from each trip.
The big plus of a motorcycle taxi is that the cost of such a taxi will be several times cheaper than the services of a car taxi. Moreover, the maneuverability and mobility of this type of transport is many times higher. By creating an advertising slogan, it will be possible to focus on saving time and money when using this type of transport. What is important, you can count not only on the attention of clients who are always suffering from a lack of time, but also on students, lovers of everything new, connoisseurs of drive and extreme.
When developing an advertisement, it must be remembered that it must be bright and memorable, and the phone number for calling a taxi must be simple and easy to remember. In this case, a person who is in an emergency will surely remember such an extraordinary and simple way out of this situation. It will also not be superfluous to place advertisements directly on the motorcycles themselves. In general, at first there should be a lot of advertising, because taxis on motorcycles have a very strong, well-proven competitor - a car taxi. Any advertisement will do, from advertisements posted at every entrance to expensive television advertisements.
However, all efforts and expenses will soon pay off, since motorcycle taxi is a completely new and not mastered line of business!
